Cambridge, MA
For Immediate Release
Darius De Haas, original cast member of the Broadway show RENT, will be in residence at MIT as part of the Spring Showcase offered by the research/performance group SLIPPAGE: Performance, Culture, Technology in residency at MIT. He will perform a staged reading of The Downright Sexy Adventures of Drew Durango at MIT's Kresge Little Theater, 48 Massachusetts Avenue, March 24 and 25 at 8pm, and March 26 at 2pm. Tickets are $6/students and $10/general available at the door.
The original musical, written especially for De Haas, chronicles the life and times of Drew, a young, queer African American man from the Midwest as he navigates the terrain of relationships in New York City. This original musical features a book by MIT Associate Professor of Theater Arts Thomas DeFrantz. The staged reading will be musical directed by Joe Delgado.
Drew Durango follows its title character through his relationships with Jake, a successful attorney living on the ‘down low,’ and Jamal, an out and proud youth counselor. As Drew careens through relationships, he has to come to terms with reality and the vision of a perfect man he imagines. The work has been in development for two years, and received previous readings in Cambridge, MA and in New York City.
De Haas will engage with MIT students during his week-long residency, and coach a master class in Musical Theater with MIT students. In addition, he will offer a talk about his career in a session moderated by DeFrantz on Monday, March 20 at 5pm in Kresge Little Theater, 48 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA. The March 20 talk will be free and open to the public.